Cupcakes have taken the U.S. by storm in the last few years; but cakes, large and small, have always been an important part of our culture. Host Charity Nebbe discusses family recipes and gourmet innovation with Evelyn Birkby, Iowa’s most famous homemaker and columnist for the Shenandoah Evening Sentinel.

After first gaining popularity in New Orleans, the Turducken—that’s a chicken stuffed inside a duck inside a turkey-- has made its way onto some of the more adventurous Thanksgiving tables in Iowa. For two restaurant owners in Oxford, it’s a way to share the cuisine of a city they left years ago. Iowa Public Radio’s Durrie Bouscaren reports.

One thing Midwesterns do better than everyone else (or at least claim to do better than everyone else) is bake pie. Host Charity Nebbe speaks with Peggy Wolff, editor of the new book Fried Walleye and Cherry Pie about Midwestern cuisine, culture and of course pie.

Fire is the original way to cook and it’s making a comeback in Iowa. Today on Talk of Iowa, Charity Nebbe hosts a discussion on wood fired ovens, a growing trend in the restaurant business. Food Critic Jim Duncan shares how these ovens are being used in restaurants around the state and Matt Steigerwald talks about the wood fired pizza oven at his Lincoln Wine Bar in Mt. Vernon.

Elissa Altman's love affair with food started when she was a child, going on covert outings to fancy restaurants with her dad. As she grew so did her love of haute cuisine. Altman's new memoir "Poor Man's Feast: A Love Story of Comfort, Desire, and the Art of Simple Cooking" tells the story of this love affair with food, but it also tells the story of Altman meeting and falling in love with the love of her life; a relationship that profoundly affected her relationship with food.

What’s your favorite traditional Midwestern home-cooked dish? We talk about the origins of Midwestern cooking style and family recipes. Guests are the host of American Public Media’s “The Splendid Table” Lynne Rossetto Kasper and Iowa radio homemaker Evelyn Birkby who give us their takes on homemade food staples.

In 1949 Evelyn Birkby began writing a weekly column for the Shenandoah Evening Sentinel. Her editor told her to include a recipe every week in her columns -- and she did -- even though she couldn’t cook. Listen back to Charity Nebbe's conversation with Evelyn Birkby about her life and her book, “Always Put in a Recipe.”

It may be a certain kind of cookie, a soup, a casserole, or even a special way to make hot cocoa. Food can connect us with people we love even after they're gone. Charity Nebbe talks about how certain foods connect us to people and the past.